My interest in radio goes back to when I was about 10 years old, when Mom had this 5 tube table top radio in her kitchen that could only receive three local stations. One day while experimenting with it, I managed to log a new station and got all excited. Other radio milestones include Christmas 1964 when receiving a transistor radio from "Santa Claus", summer 1967 when Dad brought home a portable solid state AM/SW/FM receiver, and February 1968 when earning my first QSL card from shortwave broadcast station CFRX in Toronto. Now, over 40 years later, I have over 400 stations logged on MW, over 160 on FM, over 200 on longwave, and over 100 countries (57 verified) on SW.

I became an Extra Class op on April 30, 2007 and I would like to publicly thank all the Elmers who have helped me along my way, either through their technical expertise or their words of encouragement: AB8XF, K2FO (SK), K4BRU, KC8HMJ, AK8I, KD8DLV, N1LF, VE3KXO, and my late uncle, Conrad Bappert - an electrical engineer - with whom I could discuss antennas. Special thanks also goes to W1RV who rekindled my interest in amateur radio several years before taking that first step.

The very top picture include myself (l) and my cousin Martin Foltz (r) a noted SWL listener. The picture with me at the mike is from the Oakland County Amateur Society W8TNO 75th anniversary special event station operation from July 2012.

Socialists, therefore, by endeavoring to transfer the possessions of individuals to the community at large, strike at the interests of every wage-earner, since they would deprive him of the liberty of disposing of his wages, and thereby of all hope and possibility of increasing his resources and of bettering his condition in life. (Pope Leo XIII, Rerum Novarum, 15 May 1891)

Socialism only works in two places: Heaven where they don't need it and hell where they already have it." (Ronald Reagan)